Jing Daily was in the auction room for the second installment of the Ullens sale at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong today. There they saw a lot of telephone bidding which comports with the number of Western buyers still very active in the Chinese Contemporary market. But the site’s reporter says there was a frenzy in the room:

Holding the sale in a packed house populated by dozens of mainland Chinese, alongside local buyers and dealers, Sotheby’s saw opening bids for some lots open far beyond their low estimates due to the sheer amount of bidders. At times, Jing Daily observed bid increments skyrocket from HK$2.2 million to HK$3.5 million to HK$4.5 million, generally for rare pieces like Ding Yi’s “Appearance of Crosses 2001.8 (triptych),” which eventually sold for HK$5.4 million (US$693,000), nearly four times its low estimate.

Sales Success at Second Ullens Sale in Hong Kong (Jing Daily)